


Strictly Business

by cresswells



Series: Fallout [6]
Category: Bloodlines Series - Richelle Mead, Vampire Academy Series - Richelle Mead
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Romance, Unresolved Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-08-17
Updated: 2012-08-17
Packaged: 2017-11-12 08:45:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/488961
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cresswells/pseuds/cresswells
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Sydney and Adrian are both stood up... but not by each other.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Strictly Business

"Well," said Adrian mildly. "It would appear that we've been stood up."

I glanced towards him and quickly looked away, my eyes flickering over the four empty seats at our table in mortification. "You think?" I muttered.

I'd been the first to arrive, dead on seven o'clock. I would have given Jill, Eddie and Angeline a ride, but they'd insisted that they wanted to spend the day wandering around the few shops Palm Springs had to offer.

"We'll be with Adrian," Jill said, batting away my concerns. "And I have two perfectly capable guardians. You stay, dig into the pile of homework assignments I know you've been itching to get started on. We'll see you later."

Jill had inadvertently – or, looking back, probably intentionally – uttered the magic word, the only word that could get me to relent: Adrian. I'd been avoiding him as much as possible after a few unbearably tense encounters between us and I had no desire to spend an entire day in his presence, always uncomfortably aware of his proximity and his gaze on my back and the butterflies in my stomach. Instead, I'd spent the day indoors, working not on homework, but on the spell I'd promised to perfect for Ms. Terwilliger, absorbing myself in the dull, hard work and only stopping when Jill called a little over an hour ago to invite me to this restaurant for a "family dinner". I had tried contacting her, Eddie and Angeline since, but their phones were all switched off. Usually, this would have given me reason to panic. But right now, sitting opposite Adrian in a cosy, dimly-lit restaurant unlike any I'd ever frequented before, it only raised suspicion and dread.

"They set us up," I realised. Adrian, who seemed to have already reached this conclusion, leaned back in his seat and smiled ruefully.

"I should have guessed," he said, "when Jill phoned me three times in one hour to persuade me that attendance tonight was mandatory. She must have sensed my reluctance to sit through another hour of Clarence's dinner stories." He looked up at me through impossibly thick eyelashes and smirked. "If I'd known that I would have you all to myself this evening, I wouldn't have been nearly so averse to the idea."

His words caused the butterflies in my stomach to flutter wildly, as though searching for an escape. "Adrian…" I began, setting down my napkin.

"Relax, Sage," he said. He reached down for his wine glass – already it was half-empty – and took a long, slow drink. I watched as his Adam's apple bobbed and found that I had to gulp too as I hastily glanced back along our empty table. "I was only trying to lighten the mood," he continued. "This is just as awkward for me as it is for you." He paused. "I swear, I didn't know that they were planning this."

I believed him. This was Jill's doing. And Eddie and Angeline's. My heart sank. I wondered if they knew. If Angeline knew, then _everyone_ knew. I may as well sign myself in to a re-education centre right now.

Our waitress arrived then, setting down the glass of water I'd asked for. "Ready to order?" she asked, and then she appeared to notice the empty spaces along our table. "Um… sorry, I assumed you two were alone. Are the rest of your party running late?"

"Actually, they seem to be running in the opposite direction," Adrian said as I tried to edge my chair back from the table. I'd been leaning far closer to him than I'd realised – no wonder the waitress thought we were alone.

"Oh." Our waitress looked across the restaurant before turning back to us. "There's a table for two at the back by the water feature if the two of you would like to start eating without them."

"Sure," said Adrian at the same time as I said, "No, thank you, we were just leaving."

Adrian leaned forward, eyes on mine again. "Sage," he said. "Stay. You might as well. I'll pay. It'll be strictly business, I promise."

The waitress looked extremely uncomfortable. "Um… I can give you a few minutes if you guys need more time to decide…"

"Thank you," said Adrian, pleasantly. He kept his eyes on me as she walked away to serve another table.

"I should go," I said as soon as she was out of earshot.

"Sonya rang me yesterday to update me on the progress of her latest spirit experiments," he said unexpectedly. "I was going to tell you about it during Jill's next trip to Clarence's, but since we're both here now, why wait?"

His eyes shone with intensity, but his tone was light and easy. Neutral. Too neutral. We both knew what it would mean if I stayed. We could spend the whole evening discussing Spirit or the Warriors of Light or Jill's protection, but we'd only be playing a part and we were both fooling ourselves by pretending otherwise.

I tugged my coat from where I'd draped it over the back of my chair, and stood.

"Sydney," Adrian said, rising too. "Stay. Please." I'd never thought my first name was strange, but it sounded strange in his voice. It was so rarely used by him.

"I should go," I repeated, but even as the words left my mouth, I could hear how weak they sounded.

"Sydney," he said again. He made his way around the table. He was careful not to touch me, but it didn't matter. Ever since we kissed, my body seemed to have developed a sixth sense for his. I knew what his hands felt like when they clasped mine, or were pressed against my cheeks or swept down my spine. And I recognised the stirrings of nervousness and anticipation that had become all-too familiar in the last few months. I knew how I would feel if he came any closer.

Our waitress was back again. "Great!" she said, noticing that we were both standing – and likely taking our proximity to be a good sign. "You've decided?"

"Yes," I said, before Adrian could speak. "We'll take the smaller table." I deliberately lowered my eyes, but even so, I saw him stiffen in surprise. He'd expected me to leave. _I'd_ expected me to leave. I wasn't quite sure where my change of heart had come from.

No, I was lying to myself. I knew exactly where my change of heart had come from. It had come from his proximity and the memory of his kiss and the way he'd called me, "Sydney". And those eyes. No one could resist those eyes.

I kept my eyes averted from his as the waitress took our glasses and led us to the significantly smaller table. He took the menu she offered with a polite "Thanks". I fiddled with a stray thread on my blouse and waited for him to speak first.

"Oh good," he said in a light voice. I looked up to see him perusing the menu. "They have gelato."

"Adrian –" I began, but he cut me off.

"I know, Sage," he said. He lay the menu down and looked at me again. "Strictly business, right?"

I managed a weak smile. "Right."

"And since you're the professional one here, you undoubtedly already know that all the best business meetings involve gelato."

I couldn't supress my laughter. " _Adrian_ ," I said again, shaking my head. But he'd done the impossible – he'd broken the tension between us. He grinned at my laughter, and the sight of his smile only lifted my spirits even more.

"Now," he said, easing back in his chair and smirking at me like he used to before everything changed between us. "You should also already know that it's customary to start business meetings with boring small talk. It's only polite." He shook his head sombrely. "I didn't make up the rules."

"I see," I said, trying and failing to keep a straight face. "And this small talk would consist of… what exactly?"

"Oh, you know, the usual. How are you? How was your day? Are you doing anything interesting this weekend? Been casting any spells with your witchy History teacher lately? That sort of thing."

My smile faltered at that last question, remembering my latest project. Adrian didn't say anything, but he regarded me curiously and I knew he'd noticed. All teasing aside, he genuinely wanted answers and, on the subject of Ms. Terwilliger and my spellcasting, I wanted to confide in him. He knew how deep my aversion to magic ran, and he'd seen me cast spells first-hand. He was the only person I felt I could speak to about my new extra-curricular activities.

"That sounds like a lot of questions. How long is this meeting supposed to last exactly?"

Adrian frowned in mock-consideration. "Well, it depends. Sometimes, most unfortunately, there's just not enough time to discuss _every_ order of business over dinner. In that event, both parties usually agree to meet again. For coffee?" He sounded as smooth and confident as ever as he spoke, but his voice hitched up on the last word, betraying his uncertainty.

"And this coffee da– meeting," I said slowly, "would also be strictly business?"

"Of course," he said with a toothy grin. "Why, Sage, what else would it be?"

I shook my head with a smile. My heart thumped in my chest, but my mind was oddly clear for the first time in months. I knew what this was. I knew it was wrong. I knew that even attempting the friendly rapport we'd had before was dangerous. I knew that we could never actually get away with this.

But still, as Adrian took advantage of my silence to run through proper business meeting cuisine ("Salads are a sign of inexperienced business-dining, Sage. If you want to make a good impression, you'll have to go for something a bit more adventurous than that.") I knew exactly what I was doing. And I couldn't quite bring myself to care.


End file.
